3 Tips I wish I Knew When I Started Blogging
I started blogging way back in 2014. January of 2014! So it's been a while. When I first started, my husband kept telling me little tidbits of what he was reading here and there about blogging, but for some reason, it went in one ear and out the other. I basically just wrote about my kids and what was going on in my life. I did it pretty regularly for the first few months, and then I faded off doing only a few here and there. In 2015, and 2016 I probably only did a handful of posts. I wasn't seeing much come out of the blog, so I wasn't as motivated.
Then in February of this year, for some reason I started to look into it again. I wrote a few posts, did some research, wrote a few more and did some more research. Then, all of a sudden it clicked. After reading through lots of articles about blogging, and reading LOTS of books ( I'll write about my favorites in another post), I was finally starting to get the hang of this blogging thing, and now it's so much fun, but a LOT of WORK.
I didn't realize how much work you really had to put into it. I thought, you could just write some posts, maybe share them on your FB page, and the page views would just start flying in. I was wrong. I have spent so many hours on this blog the past few months (researching, writing, editing) and I still have a lot to go. That being said, it is a lot of fun, and it's great because the schedule can be flexible!
Here are the top 3 things that would have made things so much easier, had I known, when I started way back in 2014!
1. Pinterest!- Pinterest is your best friend! I had a Pinterest account before, but didn't know how to use it, and never looked into it. I didn't realize what a gold mind it was. Just think about it. Are you having problems getting your site "out there"? There's only so many times you can post your articles on your social media pages without your "fans" getting annoyed. Pinterest is perfect for expanding your reach. It compounds so much that you could easily reach a million people. As long as you have compelling content in your posts, people are going to save them to their boards, and their followers will see it and save to theirs and so on. It's fantastic
Within Pinterest, you also need to become a collaborator to different group boards. Search for different group boards in your niche, read their short description to see if they are allowing new contributors, and follow the instructions to get added. It's really a lot easier than it first seems. The more boards you get added too, the greater reach you'll get.
Make sure you are pinning other blogger's posts as well. People will realize if you're only posting your stuff over and over, and may get bored of seeing it repeated, so pin other posts that you find interesting. Fill up your boards with rich information from all over, and your followers will grow rapidly.
2. FB Groups! - This is another great outlet that I did not take advantage of when I started. I shared my first blog posts to my business page as well as my personal page, but that didn't reach very far, maybe just over 2,000 people. Actually less! With the way Facebook does things, if you don't pay to promote your posts, it doesn't get shown to everyone. Therefore the important thing is to find Facebook groups in your niche, that allow you to post your content (many may see it as self promotion and do not allow it). For example, I'm a crocheter, so I've joined many crochet groups on Facebook. In those groups I'm able to share links to my crochet blog posts that help other people out, as well as links to my paid and free patterns. Think of the reach! The groups I join usually have anywhere from 10,000 members to over 100,000! Now not everyone will click on it, but trust me, many will. AND, they will like the content enough to share it to their page or other groups that they are in. Share, Share, Share. That is the main goal. Get it out there so others will share it and your reach gets multiplied over and over.
Another type of group on FB that has been very helpful are blogging support groups. In many of these groups there will be daily threads where you can post your most recent (or whichever you want) article. There will be specific rules for the particular thread where people will have to comment, like, share etc on at least 10-15 other posts. This has been extremely helpful to get comments on my posts. Everyone is really helpful, and real comments are left. Interaction through your page is going to increase it's status in google searches, so this is crucial.
3. Affiliates! - This one just intimidated me when I started. I didn't know what it really was, and how to go about it. I also thought you had to be a huge blogger to get into this. Little did I know, it's easy and you don't have to be huge. You will want to have quite a few posts under your belt first though, because it's possible that the different companies will require it.
Basically, affiliate programs are just companies that will give you links to put on your site. If someone clicks your link and ends up buying anything from that site, you will get a commission. A nice thing to note too is that sometimes it allows multiple days to go by. Meaning, if someone clicks on your link, but doesn't buy anything until 6 days later, you may still get credit. When you sign up for their affiliate program, it will say how long their cookies last (how many days people have to buy for you to get paid). Bigger sites like Amazon are only 24 hours but many are 2, 7 or even 30 days.
Companies become part of a larger affiliate program usually. I like to use Rakuten Linkshare, ShareASale, and Flex Offers. Within those programs, you'll find the individual companies. Some companies, such as Target and Amazon, run on their own and are not part of a bigger program.
Each site is a little different so it will take a bit of getting used to, but once you've been accepted to the companies you want, you'll be able to get a link or a banner code. You can just copy the banner codes into your html code, it's actually really easy and I'm sure you can find plenty of articles online about how to do this. Then you just wait. Some of the programs show how many impressions you have (how many times people have viewed your ads) and all of them will tell you how many times they were clicked on. I've been doing it for a month and last month I got my first affiliate sale! I was so excited I almost jumped up out of my seat! LOL.
If you have any questions about any of these, feel free to message me, or write me in the comments and I'll do my best to point you in the right direction.
Great list! I can't get traction in FB groups:( I blog about health and sharing links is frowned upon it seems unless you are selling isagenix or beachbody lol which is the opposite of my purpose! I need to step up my Pinterest game though!
ReplyDeleteThanks for This!
Ya, some of my crochet groups are the same way, but I understand. I mean, I wouldn't want to be in a group that allows people to post their personal blogs all the time. I try to even it out and interact with others on a regular basis as well.
DeleteGreat list! I can't get traction in FB groups:( I blog about health and sharing links is frowned upon it seems unless you are selling isagenix or beachbody lol which is the opposite of my purpose! I need to step up my Pinterest game though!
ReplyDeleteThanks for This!
Thanks for all the tips. I haven't had much luck learning affiliate marketing but I may try it more and look into some of the sites you suggested! Keep blogging!
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I definitely need to learn more on it, but now I know it's pretty easy to navigate, at least starting out anyways.
DeleteI definitely wish I knew about the facebook groups earlier they help so much with traffic and exposure
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely!
DeleteThese are great blogging tips. I have been blogging since 2009 and started off with a mentor so learned all the things you have outlined here early on, which was good for me. Glad you now know about them too!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the journey!
A mentor is a great idea! I wish I had one of those when I started!
DeleteI would consider myself relatively new to the blogging community. It's amazing all the different things that I am continuously learning. I didn't know there was so much work that went into blogging. Facebook groups are an amazing way to meet and engage with other bloggers! I'm still working on the Pinterest and affiliates aspects of blogging!
ReplyDeleteSoooooo much more work than meets the eye! But it's fun!
DeleteSo true! Man pinterest and blogger groups have made such a difference for me.
ReplyDeleteSame here! I hope Affiliates start kicking up more too!
DeleteI've only just discovered facebook groups even though I've been blogging for over 5 years, haha! They are great for giving me some content to share on my social networks as I get introduced to new blogs I hadn't seen before! :)
ReplyDeleteBetter late than never!!!!
DeleteWhat an awesome list for new bloggers! If any blogger wants to be successful, they definitely have to do these three things.
ReplyDeleteI agree! Thanks for visiting!
DeleteI never considered the power of Pinterest before I started blogging. I was a casual pinner, just to keep things organized for myself, but it's amazing to see how well it does with getting new traffic to my blog!
ReplyDeleteSame here. I barely used it myself, never pinned anything, never tagged any of my stuff, just used it to look around! Now, its such a big part of my blogging strategy!
DeleteI totally get what you mean about Pintrest. I'm in the process of getting set up and pintrest perfect to capitalize on that traffic!
ReplyDeleteI know there are more ways to capitalize even more on Pinterest but I haven't quite figured EVERYTHING out yet. Taking it all one step at a time.
DeleteHey Sarah,
ReplyDeleteYou have stated the most important things that every one should, who wants to start a blog. Thanks for sharing :)
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DeleteI can relate to everything you have said in this post about how hard it can be to blog. But definitely fun! I started blogging around the same time you did, but my daughter was only 3 months old and that did not allow for much time to blog . So, I am giving it another shot, second time around. I really enjoyed reading your post!
ReplyDeleteKids definitely make it hard! My two year old likes to come close my laptop when I'm working, so I can really only do it when he's sleeping!
DeleteDefinitely going to try the Pinterest board thing . I need all the help i can get
ReplyDeleteThere is so much to pinterest I've only scratched the surface!
DeleteThanks.. I really need this to boost my knowledge about blogging..
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome!
Deletesome great advice! Glad I read this, thank you!
ReplyDeleteGreat tips! Thanks for posting this!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Thanks for visiting!
DeleteThese are some great tips and this is the first post I've seen that describes how to use Pinterest really nicely!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked it. Thanks!
DeleteWow! I'm just a couple of months old in blogging world. I feel like an old lady with so many things to catch up to. I will definitely figure out Pinterest in the coming days. Thank you for all the information. I'm totally going to save this link. :)
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome! I'm glad it's helpful for you!
DeleteI think I need to start using pinterest too.I have had the habit of frequently creating blogs and discarding them for the past 3-4 years.This may was when I started the blog that I currently post in and I blog regularly.I just hope that continues.
ReplyDeleteGood luck to you! It definitely takes a lot of dedication! I took a long hiatus from this blog, but in February I got back at it!
DeleteI wish I started blogging much more earlier. It has been just 3 months now
ReplyDeleteI do as well, but we can't go back in time. All we can do is dive right in and try our best to make our blog the best it can be!
DeleteThese are great tips. I recently have joined a couple of blogging groups on Facebook and made a group board on Pinterest, as well as joined a couple. I had no clue! Blogging is still relatively new and there is quite a bit to learn if you are just stepping into the game.
ReplyDeleteSounds like your on the right track. Thanks for commenting!
DeleteThank you for the tips. Especially #3. I know nothing about affliates! Thank you for your concise explaination.
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome. There's tons of research out there about them, but there is so much it's overwhelming. I hoped I helped pinpoint exactly what you should look for!
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